Iran - Protests in Iran have subsided after a crackdown that has killed thousands under an internet blackout, monitors said Friday, a week after the start of the largest demonstrations in years challenging the country's theocratic system.

The threat of new military action by the US against the Islamic republic has also appeared to have receded for the time being, with a Saudi official saying Gulf allies have persuaded President Donald Trump to give the Iranian leadership a "chance."

Protests sparked by economic grievances started with a shutdown in the Tehran bazaar on December 28 but turned into a mass movement demanding the removal of the clerical system that has ruled Iran since the 1979 revolution.

People started pouring into the streets in big cities from January 8, but authorities immediately enforced a shutdown of the internet that has lasted over a week, and activists say is aimed at masking the scale of the crackdown.

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The "brutal" repression has "likely suppressed the protest movement for now," said the US-based Institute for the Study of War, which has monitored the protest activity.

But it added: "The regime's widespread mobilisation of security forces is unsustainable, however, which makes it possible that protests could resume."

Norway-based rights group Iran Human Rights (IHR) says 3,428 protesters have been verified to have been killed by security forces, but warns the actual toll could be several times higher. Other estimates place the death toll at more than 5,000 – and possibly as high as 20,000 – with the internet blackout severely hampering independent verification, IHR said.

The opposition Iran International channel, based outside the country, has said at least 12,000 people were killed during the protests, citing senior government and security sources.

IHR director Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam cited "horrifying eyewitness accounts" received by IHR of "protesters being shot dead while trying to flee, the use of military-grade weapons and the street execution of wounded protesters."

Monitor Netblocks said that the "total internet blackout" in Iran had now lasted over 180 hours, longer than a similar measure that was imposed during 2019 protests.

Amnesty International said this was being backed up by the use of heavily armed patrols and checkpoints to crush "the nationwide popular uprising in Iran" with security forces visible in the streets.

Trump, who backed and joined Israel's 12-day war against Iran in June, had not ruled out new military action against Tehran and made clear he was keeping a close eye on whether any protesters were executed.

While Washington appeared to have stepped back, the White House said Thursday that "all options remain on the table for the president."